LDV Winery’s award-winning wines are a direct reflection of the unique high altitude terroir in the Chiricahua Mountain foothills in southeastern Arizona. Our monthly blog From Vineyard to Table shares how we celebrate the spirit of place through LDV’s sustainable practices, entertaining approach, food & wine pairings (including original recipes), and winemaking techniques. Wine Tip Wednesday provides you with easy to apply tips to expand your wine and food enjoyment that we have been employing for years. Share your wine tips with us!

April 26 to May 3, 2017: Suckers in the Vineyard

Bud break occurred about five weeks ago at LDV and the vineyard is vibrant with the bright green colors of new growth.

It is now time for our first big project in the vineyard: suckering and shoot thinning.

Part of the winter pruning effort is to try to tell the plant where we want the new growth and fruit formation to occur. As much guidance as we give, the plant doesn’t listen.

Suckers consist of growth that occurs on the vertical portion of the cordon that is not productive and saps energy from the part of the plant that produces the fruit. This vegetation must be removed. Shoot thinning consists of removing growth on the cordon that is not desired.

Photos to the right are before and after removing the suckers.

If left, the vine will produce too much fruit and reduce the vine’s sunlight exposure and air ventilation as the grapes develop and ripen.

Suckering and shoot thinning will greatly impact the next four months of the growing season.

April 19 to April 26, 2017: Mother Earth Harmony

In honor of Earth Day April 22, 2017, we challenge all to identify and implement one new strategy to positively improve our beautiful planet.

Every day in the vineyard and winery we strive to ensure our beautiful piece of earth is protected. LDV Winery defines sustainability as “meeting our needs today without jeopardizing the ability of future generations to meet their needs.” With that principle in mind, we take a hands-on approach to the vineyard and winemaking to ensure that our processes do not harm our pristine place.

We believe this extra effort pays off in the vineyard, and ultimately in LDV’s wine.
Nature is the best teacher and guide for our viticulture and winemaking practices.

From selecting the right rootstock, carefully monitoring water usage, and nurturing the soils, it is our mission to intervene as little as possible and allow nature to work its magic. These careful efforts and sustainable practices ensure that our vineyard and land will retain its original character long after we are gone.

April 12 to April 19, 2017: Wine Colored Eggs

Deviled eggs are one of those foods that remind me of my mom and Easter. Most of the eggs never made it to the dinner table. Through the years, I have put my own spin on mom’s deviled eggs. One of these twists is to color the eggs more naturally with vegetables and wine. Here is how to get wine colored eggs.

1. Add two cups of richly colored red wine such as a Syrah or Cabernet Sauvignon into a container large enough to dip the eggs. Or add one cup red wine and one cup of Concord grape juice or pomegranate juice.

2. Peel the hard-boiled eggs. Either cut and scoop out the yellow yolk and then dip the egg whites into the red wine or add the whole peeled egg into the red wine mixture.

3. The longer the eggs soak in the wine the deeper the color. Once the desired color is achieved, make your favorite egg filling. There are many different recipes so make several different kinds.

April 05 to April 12, 2017: Terr-What?

If you stop for a wine tasting, particularly at estate wineries where they are also growing grapes, someone will mention terroir at least once.

This is the fancy French word that describes the environmental influences that impact grape growing.
These may include the weather, soil composition, water quality/quantity wind, air flow, drainage, and more. These factors will change year-to-year.

The struggle for the wine grape grower is to manage the growing season and harvest with respect to the changing terroir. And ultimately the winemaker will respond by making the best possible wine from those grapes.

When we chose our property to grow grapes, terroir was the critical factor. We used 5 criteria: (1) quality abundant water; (2) high altitude, mountain influence; (3) volcanic soils; (4) excellent drainage & air flow; and (5) no other commercial agriculture in the area to avoid chemical impacts.
You can taste our terroir in every sip!

March 29 to April 05, 2017: Meal Without Wine is Breakfast?

There’s a sign at the Wine Gallery that states “A meal without wine is called breakfast.” In our opinion, even breakfast is a great time to entertain and serve wine. Here’s why!

Breakfast or brunch can be less expensive and there are so many different possible themes – Breakfast at Tiffany’s or Chuck Wagon Sunrise. Consider a do-ahead dish such as a vegetable strata (i.e., savory bread pudding). In the morning, put it in the oven to bake, prepare coffee, and pop a cork of your favorite wine.

Sparkling wines, particularly a brut, is our go-to wine with eggs. But if you would like something different try a Viognier, Rosé, or Sauvignon Blanc that is unoaked.

Stay away from anything with high tannins or oaky flavors. Perhaps a demi-sec (sweet) sparkling wine or German Riesling if serving a lemon-ricotta pancake. Or an oaky Pinot Noir with French toast would be yummy. Remember - breakfast or brunch is not just for Bloody Mary cocktails.

March 22 to March 29, 2017: Wine with Dessert

I recently attended a winemaker dinner where our dessert wine was paired very poorly with the dessert served. Both were beautiful on their own, but together, they clashed.

Here are four tips to consider when selecting a wine to pair well with dessert.

1. Bold, dark fruit flavored Syrah or Petite Sirah pair beautifully with a chocolate dessert. A high tannin wine is needed to stand up to the tannins in the chocolate.

2. Determine the dominant flavors of your dessert to pair the right wine. Sweetness level, fruit flavors, and spices provide clues to the right wine to choose.

3. Texture is the last component to consider. Is the dessert smooth, creamy, chunky, crunchy, or nutty?

4. Sweet on sweet is not always the best answer. Many dry wines will pair beautifully with your favorite dessert.
When in doubt, ask your local wine expert or give us a call.

March 15 to March 22, 2017: What’s Neutral About Aging Wine in Oak?

LDV Winery ages red and some white wines in oak barrels. That may seem obvious but it is not necessarily the case for all wineries. Many wines never see an oak barrel with wood chips or staves being added to a tank or vat to create that oaky flavor.

While we probably use more new oak per gallon than any a lot of wineries, there are times when we want the wine’s flavor to shine through without the oak influence. These are our Sky Island wines. As a wine ages in newer oak barrels, the flavor of the barrel will be infused into the wine.

Each time a barrel is used, the flavors are leached from it until no or very minimal oak flavors are imparted into the wine.

After about three to four vintages, we consider a barrel to be neutral. We continue to use the barrel until it no longer holds wine. Up until last year, we had to purchase neutral barrels since all the new barrels purchased over the years had not yet reached neutrality. Last year was the first year that we began using our own homegrown neutral barrels – a real milestone!

March 08 to March 15, 2017: Library Wine Tasting

In the LDV Winery tasting room on our “Upcoming Events” display is posted a Library Wine Tasting. We didn’t realize an explanation was needed.

But after receiving several questions about which library we were pouring our wines at or how are you partnering with the library, we recognized that not everyone understands the significance of library wines.

It is amazing how wines continue to change in the bottle as they age. To us, that is the exciting experience of wine collecting or winemaking. LDV Winery has maintained a wine library of all the winery’s wine releases since it began.

As a young winery, we now have wines that have been in the bottle for over five years and it is time to evaluate how they are doing. Hence a library wine tasting. Learn more about this upcoming event March 24 and how to register HERE.

March 01 to March 08, 2017: Decanting Wine

Decanting ensures that wine sediment in the bottle does not end up in your glass. Wines that are not fined or filtered can have some sediment. Ports and older red wines naturally produce sediment as a byproduct of aging.

Slowly pouring the wine into a decanter separates this sediment from the clear wine. Decanting can also help aerate wine enhancing the aromas and flavors. Three tips:

1. Stand the wine bottle upright for up to 24 hours to allow sediment to fall to the bottom.

2. After removing the capsule and cork, wipe the inside of the bottle neck of any sediment using a clean cloth.

3. Pour the wine slowly and steadily into a clean vessel or decanter until the sediment approaches the bottle’s neck. The use of a lit candle under the bottle neck can assist you in seeing the sediment as it reaches the neck. Discard the remaining few ounces of wine left in the bottle. The decanted wine is ready to serve.